Seat

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a seat, in particular a vehicle seat, preferably an aircraft passenger seat, with seating components such as a sitting part ( 20 ), a back rest ( 22 ), and a leg rest ( 24 ), the position of which, in particular their inclination relative to each other, is adjustable by way of at least one operating device ( 32 ), and with a control device ( 40 ) with at least one control component, preferably manually actuatable. In that the control device ( 40 ) is provided with at least one function element ( 48,50 ) which makes certain that the control device and/or control component cannot be activated unintentionally, in addition to the control device proper, such as one in the form of an operating component or operating key, another structural component (function element) is present as a switching component; operation of the function element in the form of a connection process is necessary in order to cause activation of the control device for initiation of an operating process. A high degree of safety is thus attained and inadvertent operating processes cannot occur.

[0001] The invention relates to a seat, a vehicle seat in particular, preferably an aircraft passenger seat, with seat components such as a sitting part, a back rest, and a leg rest the positions of which may be adjusted, especially with respect to their inclination relative to each other, by way of at least one operating device, and with a control device having at least one control component which may be manually actuated.

[0002] DE-A-199 44 620 describes an aircraft passenger seat which consists of individual seat components including a leg rest and a back rest. The seat components in question may be moved by means of operating devices in the form of so-called actuating drives or actuators which may be controlled by a manually operated operating device for adjusting the seat to the requirements of the respective seat occupant. For the seat components hand levers based on the contours of these seat components are present as a component of the operating device, levers which, combined in one operating device, may effect a clear-cut adjustment for the seat components involved. If in the case of the conventional solution the hand of a seat occupant comes in contact with the control panel, an unintended adjustment movement of the seat is possible, something which may result in startling of the passenger and on the other hand involves some danger to the occupant of the seat.

[0003] EP-B-0 774 913 discloses a vehicle or aircraft passenger seat with electric control operation which acts on a leg rest to monitor the position of the leg rest so as to prevent impact of the foot rest as an integral part of the leg rest on the floor. In order to monitor protection against the impact involved, the electronic control unit monitors both the current position of the footrest and the current position of the leg rest. If this conventional seat is provided with an operating component for actuation, an operating component is provided which communicates with the actuating device by way of a cable connection or the like, especially when the operating component is laid aside an inadvertent actuating process may occur, one attended by the disadvantages already described. In addition, the conventional solution is also provided with an individual operating button (magic button) which makes it possible by means of only one operation of this magic button to transfer the seat from any given position to a so-called upright position during takeoff and landing and in an emergency situation, for example, if crashing of the aircraft is to be feared. The single operating button used for this purpose also causes the seat adjustment process described to be carried out in the event of unintentional operation.

[0004] With this state of the art taken as a basis, the invention has the object of further improvement of conventional aircraft seats, in particular aircraft passenger seats, to the end that the disadvantages described in the foregoing do not occur, and especially to the end that unintended seat adjustment movements cannot occur if a control component in the form of the operating component, an operating key, or an operating switch is accidentally actuated. A problem as formulated in these terms is solved by the features specified in claim 1 in its entirety.

[0005] In that, as is stated in the descriptive portion of claim 1, the control device is provided with at least one function element which ensures that the control device and/or the control component cannot be activated unintentionally, in addition to the control device proper, for example, one in the form of an operating component or operating key, another component (function element) in the form of a switch element is present; only actuation of the function element in the form of a connection process is required to cause the control device and/or the control component to initiate an operating process. A high degree of safety is hereby achieved and inadvertent operating processes cannot occur.

[0006] In this instance the function element is preferably designed as a safety switch (safety button); with the pertinent electric or electronic safety circuitry it makes certain that unintentional activation of the seat kinematics cannot occur. Only as a result of operation of the safety switch (safety button) are all functions of the switching and control components cleared for an operating process by the seat occupant. If the safety switch has not been operated the other operating components are blocked from performance of their functions and cannot be switched on.

[0007] The safety switch may be present on an operating component itself with the other control components in the form of pushbuttons or the like or is mounted in another place, as for example on an arm rest of the aircraft passenger seat, where it can be reached easily by the aircraft passenger or seat occupant. In this way it would also be possible, by actuating the safety switch with one hand, keeping this switch depressed, to clear the control device which, operated with the other hand, provided with a corresponding operating component initiates the movement of adjustment for the respective seat elements.

[0008] In place of the function element described, as switch or push button, however, the possibility also exists of designing this element as a type of seat occupation detection feature; this would allow the aircraft passenger, once, the seated position has been assumed, to operate the control device and/or the control component (operating component) appropriately for seat adjustment processes.

[0009] The function element designed as a safety element may be present singly but also in multiples. Consequently, the scope of the invention still includes provision of a first safety switch in a central location, on an arm rest or the like, for example, a switch operation of which connects the seat adjustment device, and another safety switch in the form of another function element, such as one mounted on the operating component, which permits an adjustment process by way of the operating component only when the pertinent second safety switch has been operated once or permanently.

[0010] The seat claimed for the invention is discussed in detail in what follows with reference to an embodiment of an aircraft passenger seat. In the accompanying drawings, drawn in outline and not to scale,

[0011]FIG. 1 presents a perspective view of two aircraft passenger seats; the rear aircraft passenger seat as viewed in the line of vision to FIG. 1 is occupied;

[0012]FIG. 2 a side view of an aircraft passenger seat as shown in FIG. 1 illustrating the basic technical structure of the seat;

[0013]FIG. 3 a manually actuatable operating component for activation of the seat kinematics for an aircraft passenger seat as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

[0014] The illustration of FIG. 1 shows an aircraft passenger seat in the upright position. Aircraft passenger seats such as this with the corresponding level of equipment are often found in the first-class area of long-distance aircraft; however, in principle they might also be used in extensively equipped coaches or aboard passenger ships, including ferries. The aircraft passenger seat shown in FIG. 1 is preferably a component of a compartment; FIG. 2 shows that the seat in question is spatially separated from the group of seats following in sequence. In principle, however, the aircraft passenger seat can also be used in multiples mounted side by side in sequence in the business class area for a conventional multiple-seat arrangement.

[0015] The aircraft passenger seat is made up of individual seat components such as a seat component 10, a back rest 22, and a leg rest 24. In addition, for the sake of better illustration the padding overlay for the seat components in question is reproduced only in part in FIG. 2, so that the components of the aircraft passenger seat under the padding are at least partly visible.

[0016] The back rest 22 is mounted so as to be pivotable about a moving joint 28 by way of a first operating device (not shown) in its inclination relative to the seat component 20 extending more or less horizontally in its initial position. The seat component 20 itself is also pivotable, by way of a four-hinge frame 30 with an operating device 32 in the form of an actuator. The leg rest 24 may be extended horizontally and is also pivotable in its inclination by way of a third operating device (not shown). In addition, the seat shown in FIG. 2 is connected by way of the four-hinge frame 30 to an upright component 34 by means of which the aircraft passenger seat may be localized to the floor of the aircraft.

[0017] Actuation of various seat components by means of various operating devices 32 is conventional, so that no more details will be presented at this point. In the case of the seat as a whole, consideration is given to lightweight construction in order to be able to increase the payload correspondingly. The aircraft passenger seat may also be provided with a monitoring device, such as one in the form of a computer unit including a small process computer or the like. The monitoring device (not shown) serves the purpose of monitoring the respective collision justified boundary geometries of the movable seat components 20,22,24 with prescribed three-dimensional limitations, the monitoring device ensuring collision-free movement of all seat components within the three-dimensional restrictions in question by actuation of the respective operating device 32 at any time. To be regarded as collision justified boundary geometries in this case are the top edge 36 of the back rest 22 and the bottom 38 of the leg rest 24, optionally with the leg rest extension (see FIG. 2). Since each seat component 20,22,24 has an independent operating device 32, provision is made such that the monitoring device detects the positions of each individual operating device in order to obtain mathematical feedback regarding the position of the seat components. Consequently, by dispensing with any movement sensors, cam-operated limit switches, or the like, it is possible also to obtain information by way of the regulating distances of the respective operating device regarding the inclination adjustment angle relative to a reference plane for the seat components. In addition, the monitoring device also permits plausibility testing of the possible positions of the seat components 20,22,24 in order to exclude operating errors and erroneous positioning.

[0018] In the embodiment of an aircraft passenger seat shown in the illustrations, a manually operated control device 40 is provided which has as control component an operating component 42 which communicates by way of a cable connection 44 with the respective monitoring and actuating device for the seat adjustment kinematics. In the case of the embodiment of an operating component 42 shown in FIG. 3 this embodiment has a plurality of operating buttons 46, each operating button 46 being associated with a specific seat adjustment situation. For example, the uppermost operating button 46 as seen in FIG. 3 could be associated with the seat in its upright position, the lowermost button could correspond to a recumbent position in which more or less all seat components 20, 22, and 24 are positioned virtually horizontally so as to afford the seat occupant the opportunity to sleep. The two operating buttons 46 situated between the two buttons referred to may then be associated with intermediate positions for seat adjustment; a respective intermediate seat position is illustrated in FIG. 2.

[0019] In order to make certain now that inadvertent switch actuation by way of the operating component 42 cannot occur, a function component 48 is mounted on the side of the operating component 42 and only after actuation of this function component 48 in the form of a manually operated key can an operating process be initiated by way of the operating switch 46. If the function component 48 cannot be operated by hand, for example, against the force of a return spring in the housing of the operating component 42, for example, the other control or operating switches 46 are locked and seat adjustment movement is not possible. Consequently, a seat occupant cannot inadvertently initiate a seat adjustment movement, even if, for example, he inopportunely lays the operating component 42 aside or inadvertently sits on it or the like.

[0020] In addition, as shown in FIG. 1 provision may be made, in addition or as an alternative to the first function element 48 for an additional function element 50, in this instance in the arm rest, which only now makes it possible to activate a seat adjustment process for the seat as a whole. That is, operation of the additional function element 50 in the form of the operating button in the arm rest 52 causes activation of the operating component 42 and a clearcut operating and seat adjustment process can be initiated by means of the operating component 42, but only after operation of the first function element 48 in the form of the hand key described. In a slimmed-down version of the operating device described, however, it is also possible to replace the first function element 48 with an operating button on the arm rest and to dispense with an additional function key. If the operating person then presses the operating button on the arm rest and keeps it depressed, an adjustment process by way of the operating component 42 with its operating button 46 becomes possible. An additional function key 50 on the seat may also be replaced by a seat recognition device (not shown) which determines if a seat occupant has occupied the seat in order thus to activate the operating component 42, with the option of operating the first function element 48 to effect seat adjustment. The seat occupation detection could also be replaced by yet other detection systems, such as one in the form of a movement sensor, which detects exactly when a person occupies a particular seat.

[0021] In any event, the safety device for a seat as described makes it certain that this seat will not inadvertently carry out an adjustment movement or assume a specific adjustment situation. Only after operation of the safety device (safety button) does intentional adjustment of the seat in accordance with a prescribable adjustment pattern (kinematics) become possible. 

1. A seat, in particular a vehicle seat, preferably an aircraft passenger seat, with seating components such as a sitting part (20), a back rest (22), and a leg rest (24), the position of which, in particular their inclination relative to each other, is adjustable by way of at least one operating device (32), and with a control device (40) with at least one control component, preferably manually actuatable, characterized in that the control device (40) is provided with at least one function element (48,50) which makes certain that the control device and/or control component cannot be activated unintentionally.
 2. The seat as specified in claim 1, wherein a monitoring device is provided for monitoring the respective collision justifying boundaries (36,38) of the movable seat components (20,22,24) with prescribed spatial limitations and wherein the monitoring device ensures collision-free movement of all seat components within the spatial limitation by actuating the respective operating device (32) at any point in time.
 3. The seat as specified in claim 2, wherein every seat component has an independent operating device (32) and wherein the monitoring device registers the position of each individual operating device (32).
 4. The seat as specified in one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the set angle of inclination relative to a reference plane is also registered by way of the regulating distances of the respective operating device (32), preferably one in the form of an actuator.
 5. The seat as specified in one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the back rest (22) is provided with a retractable and extensible headrest and the leg rest (24) with a retractable and extensible extension.
 6. The seat as specified in one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the upper edge of the rests (36) and the lower edge of the leg rest (38) are used together as collision justifying boundary geometries and/or wherein body contours of a seat occupant are also included at least in part in determination of the boundary geometries.
 7. The seat as specified in one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the monitoring device performs plausibility testing of the possible positions of the seat components (20,22,24) and in this way prevents operating and positioning errors.
 8. The seat as specified in one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the function element (48) is in the form of a (manually operated) switching device and/or of a detection device which determines if the seat is occupied by a seat occupant.
 9. The seat as specified in claim 8, wherein the switching device is in the form of an operating button (safety button), an operating switch in particular, which is mounted either on a central operating component or on an arm rest (52) of the seat.
 10. The seat as specified in claim 9, wherein the operating component (42) has a plurality of push buttons (46) and each push button (46) is associated in a prescribable sequence with a permanently prescribed seat adjustment of a seat component (20), back rest (22), and leg rest (24). 